[tli]

Hi,

I would be very gratefull if I could get some expert advice on getting a decent ISP!

I have not had any luck in the past with ISPs - they offer the world before signup and once you signed the dotted line - they don't even offer a cup of tea - simply state you have --- many months left and you more than happy to leave if you are dissatisfied.

I am currently with NTL (virgin media) - 20mb - £37.00 - for the past 2 years. I am sick of getting really bad service - from really bad speeds to unhelpfull customer service.

I have a BT plug in my room - don't know whether its LIVE or not and would be forever gratefull if someone can advice what I should do.

Will BT offer me a line for £11 - and then I either go with O2 or Be - is this possible !

At the moment I am NOT on any contract - just a rollin contract (being ripped off by VM) which I would like to stop ASAP.

Look forward to getting your feedback which will be very appreciated !

Many Thanx
tli

[Badger0-0]

As much as I slate VMs broadband, because it doesn't do what it says on the tin, I'd think very carefully before switching, as it's probably miles better than anything you can get over a phoneline.
Also consider that if your local telephone exchange is a distance away, speed will be very poor, compared to what you're used too.

[tli]

Badger0-0 - Mad props for the quick reply mate !

I agree with your comments but I feel £37 for 20mb feels a bit steep ! Would love to hear from other Virgin Media users on how much they for a 20mb line !!


Thanx Again
tli

[Badger0-0]

I'm paying the same as you, FWIW.
I've had the top level broadband package with VM for donkeys years and in it's favour, the reliability is superb, in that IIRC I've had two outages, one of which was a fire at Knowsley, which was hardly their fault.
It is steep though, I agree.

This thread may be of interest, although I'd take some of it with a pinch of salt;

www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=475183

If you're insistent on leaving, it may help;

[Rygar]

It may cost you £125 to get a BT line installed/activated (You'll need to phone them & ask to be sure) then you can indeed pay £11/month for rental which will open you up to various ADSL ISPs.Whether they will be any better than VM cable will depend on exchange distance & line quality like Badger says.

To get O2/BE they need to have unbundled your local exchange.

Use THIS link to start with. It will tell you how far you are from your exchange & the exchange name. Post back with that info for further help & an estimate of the speeds you may get with ADSL.

[tli]

Many thanx to Badger0-0 and Rygar for excellent suggestions !

I will spend the weekend looking at my possibilities - going through the disconnection threat to see if VM give me a deal.

I have seen that some people are getting phone line with the BB packages at no extra cost - if I was to use it as an incoming calls only line - will I be charged - can someone confirm this ie I don't make outgoing calls.

I am also interested in the TV paackage aswell - currently have only a freeview !!

I would welcome some feedback on who has got the best deal on a:

20mb BB + TV + Phone package !

Again many thanx for this excellent feedback !
tli

[Badger0-0]

I can't help you there mate, as the only time I'll phone them is to tell them to get rid of the lot and move over to $ky
I don't bother with haggling when I've made my mind up, it's just a case of "stick it where the sun doesn't shine", with me.

I've got the works, ie everything for £85 a month and sky is actually more expensive, although they have HD, which I so crave.
It's the price of the sky HD box that galls

It tickled me that you're now considering a VM package though
They do have some decent deals, I suppose, eg 3 for £30 etc

You could always apply the "I'm thinking of taking more stuff on, but I'm not mad on the broadband, what deal can you do me?" approach

[tli]

Cheers for all the help - have been away and just wanted to say a special thanx for the kind advice.

Peace
tli